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ALUMNI
PERSPECTIVES
Winners and losers…
the advent of the
coronavirus
T
he advent of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19,
has sent shockwaves across the global social and
economic system. Whereas 18 months ago we
were talking about the fourth industrial revolution as
the next big thing that would change the manner in which
business is done globally, our business continuity plans never
saw this pandemic coming.
As with other crises that the world has faced, we must have
the courage to reinvent ourselves and keep moving forward.
Some businesses will close down forever, and new ones will
emerge. It becomes the duty of every business leader to
think of ways to protect their businesses and much-needed
jobs. Therefore, my advice is that we seriously look at the
macro issues affecting our businesses and plan how we will
respond. Will your customers still be needing your service?
Will they still put your service amongst their ‘top priority’
expenditure line items? How do you bolster your competitive
position in the marketplace post COVID-19?
A few entrepreneurs have sprung up as manufacturers and
distributors of sanitisers, face masks and other PPE. We
must now imagine the many other changes that will make
doing business different from what used to be. In these
changes lie opportunities for us to reposition or start up new
lines of business. For instance, the centralisation of global
manufacturing in China will be reviewed particularly in areas
like medical supplies, food security and other essential
goods. We must therefore say, “What opportunities will this
present for our types of business?”
My good professor at Harvard Business School, Professor
Ranjay Gulati, asked us a simple question: “When is the
best time for businesses to get ahead? During uptimes or
downtimes?” After much debate, Professor Gulati said that
it was during downtimes that innovators and new business
ideas got a better platform to take off than during uptimes.
He was basically saying that we should never let a good crisis
go to waste; it presents learning and growth opportunities as
well. As technical students, trained at MUT in problem-solving,
this is the time we should think deeply about how we will get
tailwinds from the changes that this pandemic will bring in our
economy. In conclusion, we need to take advantage of the
business support platforms that have been created by both
Government and the private sector. Let us resist the temptation
to sit back and weep in our corners under lockdown. Yes, it is a
frustrating period, but let’s craft well thought-out proposals to
preserve our businesses beyond this period.
By Mlamuli Buthelezi, MUT Alumnus, Class of ’86
Resilient leadership in
the time of COVID-19
I
’m often asked what we mean by resilient leadership in the context of the current health
crisis. I think everyone will agree that returning to a world that existed before COVID-19
would mark failure. We all should expect more. We have a chance to use what we’ve
learned during this pandemic to usher in a new and better normal. The key to doing
so would be exercising resilient leadership; having the ability to energise our teams by
looking outward; imagining a successful future and embracing trust to get us there.
The biggest challenge organisations will likely face next is the tension between getting
back to work and embracing a new reality. How leaders and organisations handle the
recovery may define their brands for years to come and ultimately define whether they
are truly operating as a social enterprise. Rebuilding working structures and relationships
and factoring in priorities like mental health and well-being in a post-COVID-19 world
will require a new kind of leadership – one that is authentically more human, is rooted in
connections, and focuses on uplifting, inspiring, and enabling workers to deliver their best.
By Sthembiso Phakathi, MUT Alumnus, Class of ’90
M U T A L U M N I M A G A Z I N E
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